The Cleansing Of Memories
by Onataria
Summary: WARNING HEAVY SPOILERS FOR DISSIDIA 012.  After accepting her fate, Lighting finds herself remembering a previous cycle's end.


**A/N: Warning, this story contains heavy spoilers for Final Fantasy Dissidia 012. It is also mixed with fanon as there was no hints to certains events I wrote in. Please enjoy!**

**The Cleansing Of Memories**

Lightning knew when she had entered into the battle at the Empyreal Paradox with her fellow warriors of Cosmos, she wasn't coming back. She had long heard of what happens when your slain in battle at the hands of a Manikin ( You lose your place in the battle and cannot be revived by Shinryu) and yet she stood defiantly as a barrier to block the oncoming replicate army from reaching Cosmos. The only trouble was there was only 6 of them and hundreds of Manikins headed directly for them, intent on ending their existence.

The six man army had put up a brave fight indeed; Yuna was summoning Aeons left and right; Tifa was heavily laying into every enemy she could hit; Laguna was firing all his arsenal at the oncoming horde; Vaan was slashing and blasting as fast as he could; Kain was going so fast with his moves you could barely see him; and Lightning was using the full power of her Eidilion Odin at her command.

But nothing lasts forever. Yuna was the first to fall. She was concentrating on summoning Shiva on an Emperor replica when a Tidus copy slashed her from behind. She cried out in agony, alerting her team-mates to her situation. Laguna shouted out in horror and ran straight towards her, his machine gun blasting out rapidly as he sprinted. He was about five feet away from her when an Ultimecia copy materialised above him, blasting him with it's Griever. He fell silently to the floor, his gun clattering beside him.

By now, the remaining four members were feeling the draining effects of the crystal hovering above

the Empyreal Paradox. With trading blow after another trading blow, Lightning remember that the point of this fight wasn't to withstand the onslaught but save Cosmos from being killed. She dealt a killing blow to a nearby Warrior Of Light copy but preparing herself.

She gathered her energy together to summon her Eidilion Odin's main weapon. With it in hand, she threw it with all her strength towards the fissure from which the replicates were coming from. It flew swiftly, landing with a clang, embedding itself within the crack. Within moments of the impact, the crack made a gushing sound as if something was being pushed out. Light then flooded upwards out of the gap.

Almost as if it was a coincidence or even fate, within mere seconds of the crack showing signs of closure,Lightning fell into a crouching position. Seconds later, Vaan cried out in exhaustion. He fell to his knees, no longer able to stand. A second later, he fell flat onto his face. Kain followed suit falling onto his side, now empty of energy. Tifa collapsed right after him, crying out into pain.

Lightning held on to her position, staring at the incoming wave of Manikins headed towards them. Fearing the worst, she prayed she had acted in time. Her prayers were answered when the crack sent out a final burst of energy, causing the army of copies to disintegrate into crystalline dust.

Lightning felt herself nearing the point of passing out. She had accepted her fate and was ready to face what awaited her. But she felt energy fill her body. Old memories she had long forgotten flooded their way into her mind. Battles on floating castles over deserts & hovering gardens, old allies and enemies that had fallen in the line of battle.

But it was one memory that struck her heart in particular. She saw herself on Orphan's Cradle facing a similar battleground: An army of Manikins led by a large winged replica of the God of Discord, Chaos were fast approaching. A line of about 23 Warriors of Cosmos stood together ready to face this battle. Lightning was about to lead the charge when she found herself frozen by magic. She found within seconds that it was not only her but the Original 11 Warriors of Cosmos, Yuna, Laguna, Tifa, Kain, Vaan and Prishe. Mere moments laters, they had begun to float into the sky. Lightning could see that 5 Warriors remained on the ground moving forwards to face the army. These bold fighters consisted of a young woman with long blonde hair that had powers similar to the Chaos Warrior Terra, a younger girl with purplish hair with a efficiency with a rapier, a small creature that had the powers of a Black Mage, & a woman with Raven dark hair in a blue outfit that wielded both magic and weaponry.

But it was the fifth Warrior that made Lightning fight against her imprisionment with all her strength as she relived it. A young boy with layered silver hair,similar to the Chaos Warrior Tidus, was holding a connection with the other four casting a spell on the other Warriors. Lightning screamed out his name in vain as she was rising higher and higher. She could see the Manikin army reaching them.

Just as the first copy was about to strike him, Lightning lost her energy and felt her consciousness slip away. The next thing Lightning saw was her allies lying on a circular stone tower. The Warrior of Light had regained consciousness and was getting up when the bodies around him began to glow an eerie gold. They rose into the sky one by one. Lightning saw an etheral dragon swoop down and circle the area. She knew what was happening. Her allies were moving onto the next cycle but this time they would be going without her.

The Warrior of Light turned to face her and her friends as they began to fade away. It came to that all that was left was Lightning. She aknowledged her fate with a nod towards the first Cosmos Warrior before fading away.

Not a minute had passed before Lightning found herself alone in a space void of life. She had feared and suspected that those who fall to a replica don't get to return home and was now ready to accept her fate. It was only when a bright light appeared beside her that she jumped backwards in shock. The light quickly took shape into the form of the silver haired boy from her last memory. The boy smiled at her warmly. Lightning oddly found herself doing the same. The boy held out his hand for her to take. Lightning slowly took a hold of the hand and grasped it tightly. The pair of them began to glow a fain rose pink colour as they stood still. Still smiling, Lightning opened her mouth and said four words: "Let's go home, Hope."

Still smiling, the pair walked forwards until they faded away from the Void. All that now remained was a few specks of dust and a ghostly form of the Goddess of Harmony. _'Thank you both,' _She said without speaking a word, _'For everything.'_

**A/N: My first every Dissidia fanfic! Yay! Reviews are love and if I get enough feedback, I may write Dissidia 009: Novem! Ok so for everyone's information, I chose Celes because she was the one VI that stood out to me, I chose Lenna because I wanted someone who would be popular, I chose Rinoa because I'd rather have had her in 012 than Laguna, I chose Vivi because we needed another non human after Zidane and Shanotto, and I chose Hope because I waned to have him in it after Lightning and I thought he would mature within the cycle and be ready for fighting in his own world once he returned. Ok, I may have others in Novem so I'd like ideas too so reviews + ideas are love!**


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